How it went down wasn’t particularly satisfying, but taking two out of four points against Florida and Carolina was a reasonable goal for the Penguins this weekend and they did it. Unfortunately, it involved blowing a two-goal lead against Carolina and then dropping the second point in OT/shootout for the second consecutive game.
Semi-encouraging was Pittsburgh earning two points in these games with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin combining for only two points in the two games. Historically speaking, this would have been a zero standings point endeavor. All in all I think this was a reasonable output given the opponents and the kind of team the Penguins currently have.
I’d like to quickly point out a potential opportunity the Penguins (and others) have at the moment. The Los Angeles Kings have released Arthur Kaliyev. I believe he fits the exact profile Kyle Dubas spoke of when targeting players. He is young (23) and is a functional NHL player with minimal contract commitments. He also happens to have decent underlying numbers
LAK waiving Kaliyev, a former 33rd overall pick, who was a top player for two US WJC teams is an obvious boon for any team that puts in a claim.
He's 22, 6'2", 210 lbs and coming off a broken clavicle, so he hasn't played this year yet.
Here is his 3 year RAPM ending in the 2023-24 season.
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— Steve Burtch (@stephenburtch.bsky.social) January 6, 2025 at 10:05 AM
He seems to be a player, when on the ice, there are things being generated. The results are coming in under expectation, but I can appreciate the generation aspect of things. I am more inclined to give a generator a chance than a suppressor.
I don’t think it is disastrous if the Penguins don’t put in a claim for him (even if they do another team might slot in before them). However, as I said, I think this is the kind of opportunity Dubas was looking for when talking about adding players to the organization. Younger players who might have more to give on a different team. The Penguins certainly have the chance to give players like this a look because they are not truly competing right now. I would say give it a go while also not having high expectations. It’s a free move for the most part. I don’t think it would be too difficult for the Penguins to create a roster spot. I mean they already bounced Puljujarvi via waivers.
We’ll see how this one plays out. This might actually be a situation where we see someone claimed on waivers.
Lastly, the Penguins were in Carolina the same exact weekend as the Minnesota Wild. Which means this is probably the first time in a long time we saw Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, Marc-Andre Fleury, and Jordan Staal all in the same place. Fleury being who he is did not let this go by the wayside.
#mnwild insider: Marc-Andre Fleury pranks Sidney Crosby to end fun week for Flower, Carson Lambos on his future, Eric Staal’s No. 12 to Carolina rafters, Wild prospects at the World Juniors and more
By @JoeSmithNHL and me>>>
www.nytimes.com/athletic/603...
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— Michael Russo (@russohockey.bsky.social) January 6, 2025 at 8:26 AM
Well, Saturday morning when the Minnesota Wild and Fleury’s old Pittsburgh Penguins just so happened to be sharing the same Raleigh hotel, Crosby poked the bear once again and learned the hard way — or funny way — that he probably should not have.
While the Wild were at their morning skate at Lenovo Center, Crosby and a few of Fleury’s former teammates managed to get the key card to his hotel room.
They tiptoed in and “moved some things around,” Fleury told The Athletic after Saturday night’s 4-0 win over the Canes.
Bad idea, especially since Fleury was backing up Filip Gustavsson and had a lot of time on his hands. It sure worked out that the Penguins’ equipment bags happened to be stacked outside the Wild’s locker room.
Maybe the Penguins staff expected Fleury to seek some payback because we’re told Fleury had to search long and hard for Crosby’s bag. He dug all the way to the bottom and voila, there was No. 87’s stuff.
When Crosby arrived at the game Sunday night against Carolina, he discovered, we’re told, Vaseline all over his visor, his skate laces upside down and beef sticks inside his jock.
This might be the final prank on his former friend in a long line of pranks.
Thanks for reading!
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